TPSO warns that scammers are impersonating officers

Scammers preying on people’s fears and threatening arrest for a missed summons for jury service.

Callers impersonating court officials, or in this case – Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office Court Services - are calling random victims to try to convince them to pay a fine to avoid arrest for failing to appear for jury duty.

Scammers not only pretend to be court officials; they’re spoofing their numbers so it appears to be coming from a local number. The caller remains very convincing as they provide the information to confirm the victims, name, spelling and address. The caller then proceeds to state the name of the local judge that has issued several misdemeanor summons for failing to appear for jury duty.

The caller then insists that their victims rectify these issues by the end of the business day or they will be arrested. “The caller’s objective is to fluster people and impede their better judgment,” says Edwards. The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office does not send jury summons via U.S. mail and will never demand payment or sensitive information over the telephone.

“We want to make the public aware of telephonic and impersonation scams so they can avoid becoming victims,” said Edwards.

It’s also important to remember – Do not open an e-mail attachment from any unfamiliar source, and never provide personal information to an unfamiliar source, either by phone or e-mail.